Made Of Iron
by Nemoa
Summary: When she met him she thought he was the most insufferable playboy billionaire there is. After getting to know him she realized he was that and so much more. One-shots that may or may not be connected with each other. Some OOC-ness may occur.
1. Hello

**Disclaimer: I do not own either the InuYasha characters or those from Iron Man.**

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Kagome nervously smoothed out her pencil skirt and fiddled with the hem of her shirt. It had been five full years since she had left the feudal era for good. Five years since she had said goodbye to her friends and the adventures in the past, and said hello to the dull life of being a normal teenager in the future.

Surprisingly, to both her family and her school, she had managed to finish her remaining years with a top grade – she even got a diploma for having a great comeback from being sick from various – and highly ridiculous – diseases.

Thereafter Kagome had taken classes for both economy and world trade, and it weren't long before she was offered a small job at an office. It wasn't something big like being a personal assistant; it was merely a job where Kagome got to deliver letters and packages to the workers, and sometimes she got to answer the phone.

Then one day on her way home after a tiring, but gratifying, day at work she had run into someone she hadn't dared to imagine; Sesshomaru. Who certainly didn't look like Sesshomaru should; his markings, his hair, even his eye color was totally different from the lord she knew. He had closely cropped black hair and his normally golden eyes – that resembled InuYasha's so much, she remembered sadly – were dyed a dark brown, almost black, color.

He also sported a discreet business suit, which amused her when she thought of the delicate and noticeable battle armor. She had schooled her amusement however when a very familiar and very icy glare was sent her way.

Instead of sneering at her and calling her miko, woman or simply human, he had been eerily polite – if she didn't count that little glare of course. He had simply taken her hand and greeted her as though they were acquaintances meeting on a daily basis. What happened thereafter, she didn't know, but soon Kagome found herself sitting at a café with a coffecup in her hand, Sesshomaru on the other side of the table and a job offer – a real job – being passed over to her.

"It is for one of my acquaintances; his personal assistant quit suddenly and he needs help with maintaining his schedule," Sesshomaru had said as he sipped an herb tea delicately. "The man can be grating on the nerves as he is both irritating and, as you would say, a 'playboy'. But I cannot sense any ill intent from him and he has some intelligence which makes him an important business partner of mine."

That was as close to praise as anyone could come, Kagome figured dumbly; Sesshomaru was practically oozing respect for the man she didn't even know the name of.

They had talked for an hour, with questions being answered and asked, before Kagome had readily accepted the offer. A purr of excitement had wrestled in her stomach as Sesshomaru had said, as in passing, that the job – as well as the man – was located in New York City and that Sesshomaru himself would see to it that Kagome could get there.

When Kagome had asked why he would do that he had answered mysteriously, "I owe you." What she had done to get _the_ lord Sesshomaru's favor, she had no idea. Nonetheless, she was grateful.

It was bittersweet to take her leave from the work she had grown to love along with the people involved in it. It got worse the day she was leaving to the U.S.; her whole family, including her, were exchanging several bone crushing hugs, crying crocodile tears as well as sobbing loud enough to attract other travelers curious eyes. Sesshomaru had chosen to accompany her to her new residence in the states and had stood patiently some ways off as the spectacle unfolded around him; every bit the stoic demon lord Kagome remembered.

On the plane she had sat with wide eyes and bounced on her seat like a little child as they left ground; she had cooed and gasped occasionally as she watched Tokyo (flygplats) grow smaller and smaller before land became sea.

At some point she must have fallen asleep because the next thing she knew they had landed. She hadn't gotten the time to look around before Sesshomaru whisked her away and dumped her at her new apartment with strict orders of being ready the next day for her interview.

"Miss Higurashi?" Kagome jumped as the voice of the receptionist called her name. The woman smiled politely at her before pointing to an elevator at the far end of the corridor. "You can go in now for your interview; it's the highest floor."

Kagome stood hastily, bowed deeply to the receptionist before she walked into the elevator. When the doors closed Kagome let out a nervous sigh and smoothed out her skirt once more.

'Come on, Kagome: you can do this!' she coached herself, clenching her fists as though she were preparing for battle. 'You've battled several demons, traveled across feudal Japan and have nearly lost your soul more than once – you can do this!'

But her newly formed nerves failed her as the elevator stopped with a loud ding and the doors slowly opened, thus revealing a small space on the other side with a door at the end. Kagome let out a shaky breath, raised her head and walked straight-backed the small space. She knocked softly on the door and waited.

"Yes , yes, come in," she heard a male voice say aloofly. He sounded really bored, Kagome realized and it was as though that fact helped her nerves gain battleground in her body as she opened the door and walked into the giant office behind it.

She examined the office briefly, noting the professional but cold atmosphere in the room, before she stared at the chair behind the desk… where she presumed her, hopefully, future boss were sitting. It was rather hard to tell when the object wasn't facing her.

Kagome cleared her throat. "Good day, sir. My name is Kagome Higurashi and I'm here about the job as a personal assistant." Here she would have bowed politely, but it felt rather ridiculous to bow to a chair – which may or may not house an individual.

An eerie and uncomfortable silence followed. Kagome bit her lip nervously.

"Kagome, was it?" She jumped and looked over at the chair. It had yet to move, but she was sure that the voice had come from there.

"Yes, sir," she said softly.

Quiet again. Then suddenly the chair swiveled around and a male jumped out of it before he stomped over to Kagome and took her hand. "You're hired!" he chirped, brown eyes twinkling at her.

"Wh- huh?" Kagome stared at him as he pumped her fist up and down. When he let go she stood for a while, just staring at him incredulously. Then she narrowed her gaze. "Sesshomaru threatened you, didn't he, Mr. Stark?"

Tony Stark smiled innocently and dragged a hand through unruly dark brown hair. "I can't imagine what you mean, miss Higurashi." He blinked and seemed just now to take in her appearance as he looked at her from head to toe. "But even so, I would have hired you immediately. Do you know that those are some very attractive calves you have?"

"Excuse me?"

"No, no, believe me; I mean it. Very nice, really pleasantly shaped too. Travelling a lot by foot, I believe," Tony mumbled seemingly to himself. A dark look came over his face but were gone as soon as it appeared. Kagome blinked, unsure if she had really seen it. "Right!" Tony declared brightly as he clapped his hands together. "Judith will tell you all you need to know about this job; the pros, the cons, what to do, what not to do and so on, and so forth. Now, I need to be home right-" he looked at his watch and sighed theoretically "-now, so I will leave you to it."

"But, Mr. Stark-"

"And very welcome to the company, Kagome Higurashi – I hope we will both find this an interesting experience." And so he was out the door, so fast that Kagome was left standing with her mouth open and a hand reaching out for the male.

A second later the door opened again and Tony peeked in. "Lest you forget, have tomorrows schedule done and ready tonight; we've a hectic week before us." Once more he was gone and Kagome left standing like a question mark.

Either he really was busy and was hurrying to a meeting of some sort, or she had just been dismissed in a rather rude way. She cursed silently as she hurried out of the office to find this Judith – Kagome hoped that the female would have some inkling to what Tony Stark's schedule looked like, otherwise she was screwed. And it wasn't even her first day!

As the elevator brought her down she couldn't for the life of her remember anything about the male she had just met other than that shadow that passed his face and bright brown eyes.

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**Hmm. **Some sort of beginning. I hope it wasn't all too confusing, but are there any questions do ask.


	2. Indirect Kiss

**Disclaimer: I do not own either InuYasha nor Iron Man. Just another fangirl using her time dreaming of crossovers and such.**

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_Indirect Kiss_

He was having a party. Again.

And it was filled with people that neither she nor her superior knew. Again.

Kagome shook her head irritably at her boss' quirks and took a swing from the champagne glass in her hand. He had only yesterday been fighting that man with the electric whips, who had been the most badass enemy Tony Stark so far had met in her opinion.

Tony had won of course – but not without his own wounds and dwindling strength. After using up the last of his energy to save Pepper he had collapsed and been whisked off to the closest hospital. It had been a ruckus, what with his ex, his best friend and Kagome trying to wrestle their way into the building without hurting the unconscious man further. Of course, how the bloodhounds, aka paparazzis, had caught wind of where they were going and with who didn't make matters easier.

Pepper had stayed by his side in the matter of half an hour, twiddling with the hem of her shirt nervously, before leaving. Just like that; sitting there in a chair by the out cold billionaire's side and then rising abruptly and storming out.

Kagome took another sip and looked around at the partying humans around her that seemed oblivious to the fact that this wasn't a party for _celebrating_. Merely a 'I-got-dumped'-party hosted by the playboy billionaire.

An arm snaked around her waist and pulled her closer suddenly. Kagome looked up and eyed her boss' unshaved chin as he smiled amiably. "Having fun, little butterfly?"

She frowned and stepped out of his one-armed hug.

Tony pouted but then smiled brightly. "Come now, smile a little. It's a _party_! _Everyone_ has to smile and laugh!"

"Mr. Stark, this pity-party isn't something I would call an occasion to _smile_ about," Kagome said sternly, once again studying the people around them with little interest.

He laughed and had she not been working for him for five years she would have thought it sincere. "Pity-party? Come on, Kagome – don't you know me better than that after all these years?"

Blue eyes glanced at him before she hummed. "Yes. That's why I say this-"Kagome motioned to the crowd and the DJ "-isn't something you need right now."

His lips twitched and he leaned closer to her, staring intently into her eyes. Kagome countered by leaning back. The brown eyes staring at her had a dull expression that he was adapt in keeping others from seeing – but neither Kagome nor James Rhodes could be tricked.

"What is it that I need then, Ka-go-me?" Tony purred slowly, leaning further forward and thus making Kagome walk backwards into the wall. His smile grew larger and he placed an hand flat on the wall beside her head.

Kagome didn't look away. She didn't move nor attempt to push him away. Instead she raised a single dark eyebrow and thrust her champagne at him.

Startled he instinctively took the glass so it would not empty it contents onto his expensive playboy suit and backed several steps, colliding with a woman behind him. At the female's angry cry he apologized absentmindedly, staring at the drink he now found in his hand. Looking up he saw Kagome already walking away from him.

"Drink your sorrows away," Kagome called over her shoulder, grabbing another glass of champagne as a server walked by. "At least for tonight."

He watched her midnight-blue dress walk through the crowd before she disappeared from his line of vision, then he looked down at the innocently bubbling drink in his hand before he laughed out loud. Ignoring the puzzled – and slightly awed, since he was Tony Stark, the Iron Man – looks he smiled broadly and raised the drink to his lips. He stopped the motion though as something caught his eye.

There, on the rim of the glass, was a distinct red mark that anyone dallying with the ladies or was in the use of makeup would recognize. Lipstick.

He couldn't resist. Tony raised the glass and placed his lips on the very same place that Kagome's lips had occupied mere minutes ago.

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Some of you are thinking "The hell is she doing?! Starting another one?!"  
Yes - but this one is merely here so I won't stop writing alltogether. Life got in the way for my other stories and thus I've a hard time getting back on track. But do not fret people! _Robot Era_ and perhaps even _Stray Dog_ are going to be updated!  
...soon, I hope.


	3. Acting Up

**Disclaimer: I don't own neither InuYasha or Iron Man. I just borrow them to create an impossible but fully enjoyable reality.**

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_Acting Up_

The male moaned loudly and thrashed around on his bed, ruffling the expensive and 'dry-cleaning only' sheets around himself. He made a pitiful sight; covers thrown and curled around his form in careless, though deliberate, waves, leaving his torso and arms bare and a fot playing peekaboo as he moved around.

However, she didn't buy it one bit.

"Oh, the _pain!_" the male moaned dramatically, clasping his sheet tightly between his hands.

"Don't be such a baby, Mr. Stark," Kagome chided as she stared at him indifferently from across the room, feeling a slight irritation growing with the playboy billionaire's behavior. "You had your suit on when that building collapsed on you."

"A _building_, Kagome – a _building_!" Tony Stark wailed dramatically

"From which you only received a few bruises," Kagome deadpanned. She flickered through the bundle of papers – mostly reports and complaints about Iron Man's latest escapade – until she found what she was looking for. Scanning the paper rapidly Kagome sighed exasperatedly at the numbers the bill sported. "_Why_ did you have to destroy Mr. Taisho's office? The one with _thirty-five _floors and that was completely new?"

You would think that being an old friend with Sesshomaru Taisho you would gain some kind of benefit from it, Kagome thought sadly as she felt some of her life-force slowly drain out of her as the numbers practically glared up at her. Sesshomaru may no longer be the ever stoic Lord of the Western lands and adorned in his pristine white battle clothes and awe- inspiring demon aura, but he could still use you like a chew toy if you weren't careful.

"Oh, just get my checkbook from the drawer and I will get that little problem out of our lives," Tony said and gestured to his side lazily. He sounded surprisingly careless and stoic about having to pay a sum that had more than nine zeros – especially since he was supposed to be riddled in pain.

Then again, that was Tony for you.

Damn rich bastard, Kagome thought. She conveyed her thought of the slightly older man's action through her eyes as she click-clacked her way over to the drawer, but Tony had once more erupted into his own dramatic bed of woe and self-pity over his fading bruises.

After combing through old magazines – whose covers she didn't dare look at – and different utensils she had never seen in her life before, Kagome managed to find the little square book. Scribbling down the appropriate numbers onto it and ripping the piece of paper out of its nest, she handed it to Tony so he could sign the little piece of lifeline. Unfortunately, the playboy billionaire was back to moaning theatrically; this time an arm slung over his eyes and thus unable to acknowledge – or simply refusing to see – the paper their necks futures rested on.

Of course, Tony did not see his neck's future wholeness as something to take great precautions' to maintain – not in the way Kagome did.

Kagome grabbed his hand and tried to wrench it away from his face. "Please sign this, Mr. Stark," she gestured the little paper as a flag before one of the billionaire's big brown eyes that peeked out from under the arm.

The eye seemed to glint. Then Tony wailed, louder than before, "Oh, woe me! Here I'm lying, practically comatose from the pain which has been caused to my poor, poor body! And you, infuriating woman, wish – no, _demand _- of me to use my poor _tender_ fingers to hold a pencil to sign a piece of paper! Oh, woe me – the pain is-"

Kagome rolled her eyes. "What do you want, Mr. Stark?"

The rest of his oh so dramatic monologue broke of as he revealed his face fully to her. A dangerous smile which she knew he thought was charming and alluring – which she had to admit it somewhat was – stretched out on his features. The glint was now in both eyes.

He offered his hand to her. Kagome looked down at it confusedly and arched an eyebrow.

"Kiss to make it better?" He suggested, one eyebrow of his own raising playfully.

Kagome sputtered, aghast over such a suggestion. "W-what? Mr. Stark, you can't-"

"And this pain," Tony began again, a huge pout replacing the smile, "that is practically _crushing _me as I try to star-"

"Oh, for the love of-"Kagome growled angrily as she blushed madly, grabbed his hand and planted a hard kiss onto his thumb.

That managed to cut of the older man's rambling. Kagome blushed even redder than before as she met his widened eyes before quickly turning her face away and dropping his hand.

They were quiet for a full minute, the only sound heard in the billionaire's bedroom being their breathing. Kagome was positive that Tony could hear her heart's panicked thudding that was so loud in her ears.

"You know," Tony said at last, slowly as though he had contemplated something for quite some time. He waited until Kagome embarrassedly met his amused brown eyes. "I still have nine fingers left."

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**I have **just now noticed how fun it is with these one shots. As some of you may know, I tend to drag out on my stories quite a lot. And, yes - I know it is really _annoying_ when the chapters aren't in any special order or are just confusing; I hate it too. But this special fanfic full of oneshots one exists for one purpose; to get me back to writing again. I've completely fallen of the horse, so to speak; I'm even having trouble writing poetry, which never use to happen.

THIS I can promise however; one day - not tomorrow, maybe not even in a year - I will make some sort of cleaning up with these oneshots so it follows some sort of pattern. Until then - bear with me!

Rambling author note aside, comments and suggestion how to get better always helps! Kindly review of you find the chapter enjoying :D


	4. Payback

**Standard Disclaimer: I do not own either InuYasha characters or Iron Man characters. Or, for this one chapter, Batman characters either. Amber and Stacy are mine however!**

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Alright. This was not something Kagome had ever imagined would take place. Or more like something she had hoped to avoid for as long as possible. But fate had a funny way of ignoring her wishes, and thus she found herself in this something.

Or more like she found herself with some_one_. More accurately, _two_ someones.

On her left side she had one Sesshomaru Taisho in all his human-disguised glory. A mask of indifference, that nothing in the world could rip off, clothed his face and made his perfect sculpted features resemble something in the class of a sculpted Adonis. A neat, buttoned up suit that brought attention to his light brown – and very human – eyes which had women swooning and turning heads from left and right. He had her hand tucked securely but loosely under his arm as he stood erect and at attention – while appearing to not care about anything or anyone.

On her right side however she had the genius billionaire, playboy philanthropist. Also known as Tony Stark who just happened to be her boss. An all-human, who walked with a spring in his step as he smiled flirtatiously at anything labeled 'woman' in his way. His dark brown eyes, that was almost the exact same color as his wavy hair, twinkled with mirth and such carelessness that you had to be either blind, dumb or too occupied drooling over his looks to miss. In addition to Sesshomaru, Tony had the last three buttons unbuttoned, had one of his hands in his pocket and the other circled around a champagne glass. Somehow he had managed to snag her other hand so she was trapped under his none-champagne-occupied arm – like a wolf would be in a leghold trap.

And between these two very different people – both in personalities and styles – she stood; clad in a cute green-dotted dress and heels that didn't make her stumble or stagger. Kagome had thought herself cute in that getup and had bounded out of her apartment to meet up with Sesshomaru.

Then she had met Tony. At her place. And thus she had found out she was an _accesoary _for the two billionaires for the next business/charity party for the 'Unmarried and Proud Women's Club'. Kagome winced as she received yet _another_ death-glare. Whose bright idea was it to have Tony Stark – currently single – _and _Sesshomaru – the everliving bachelor – host _this_ kind of party?

"Can't you keep it down on the testosterone and pheromones?" she groaned and ducked her head. Damn, that woman was _gorgeous_! Why would she think Kagome would be a threat?

"Are they affecting you?" Tony asked. With a flirtatious smile, of course, as he looked down at her. She glared at him in answer, which unsurprisingly only made her boss' smile widen remarkably. "Of course, I meant the women. I can't imagine what other reason you would stare so heatedly at me."

Oh, he was digging his own grave, Kagome decided as her eyes narrowed.

Sesshomaru huffed. "We are only here for business, Stark," he murmured with an aloof glance at the smiling billionaire.

"Of course, Taisho – but why not combine business with pleasure when you can?" Tony wiggled his eyebrows.

Kagome sighed. Sesshomaru made no expression as he eyed the walls around him.

"It tends to become either unhealthy or unpleasant," Sesshomaru said. A short pause. "Often both. Especially if the woman are anything like these females."

Tony shrugged and took a swig of his champagne. "Oh, cut them some slack, Mr. Knickers-In-A-Twist," Tony mumbled around the lip of the glass, ignoring the frosty glare the other male gave him, "and try have some fun. I know I will."

And so he was gone, whisking away with a wave of females following in his wake.

Sesshomaru gave a small, suffering, sigh. "Why did I recommend you to that insufferable idiot again?"

Kagome wrapped her free hand around his arm. "Because somehow and somewhere in that oh so cold heart of yours you do care about him." She smiled sunnily up at him. He sighed again, but nonetheless led her around the room without comment.

-ooo-

An hour later and Kagome found out that she hated anything that was made by hands. For starters; shoes. Whose bright idea was it to cram your feet down into such stuffy pieces of leather that saw it as their main goal to either give the wearer blisters or such pain in the toes and heels that the woman more resembled a ninety-nine year old gran with backache than a young woman in her twenties?

But God bless the one who invented chairs, she thought as she leaned back in the one Sesshomaru had dumped her in some twenty minutes ago. Tony had been gone for the better part of an hour, and she had thought she had seen glimpses of him from time to time. It was hard to tell with the other brunettes that occupied her field of vision.

Kagome rolled her shoulders wearily and sighed before standing up slowly. Perhaps if she could find either Tony or Sesshomaru she could tell them she were going home – Sesshomaru would reprimand her but let her go. Tony would probably make a joke out of how she was weak to partying.

"Miss?" Too tired to care Kagome glared at the male that stood before her, hand extended toward her. A black-haired male with a self-confident smile peered down at her. "Would you care to dance?"

Dance? Why in the blazes would she _care_ to hurt and trip over her feet more than necessary? Kagome rubbed a temple as she scrutinized him briefly. Neat hair that was slicked back and a set of dark blue eyes that stared down at her, twinkling with a hidden darkness; a playboy suit that was an oddly a cross between Sesshomaru's and Tony's. What struck her was that she was pretty sure – no, _absolutely _sure – that she had seen him somewhere before.

And why was another person – a male who wasn't either Sesshomaru or Tony – at a charity/business party like this?

"No, thank you," Kagome said politely, and scanned the sea of brunettes, blondes, redheads and crossbreeds of colors that went back and forth in the room. Where were they? "I don't think so; I just want to find my friends."

The man smiled politely, and sexily – she was a creature after all and not immune to charming smiles – as he once more extended his hand. "May I escort you until you find them?"

She eyed him a moment longer, shrugged and delicately laid her hand in his offered one. "You may."

He tucked her hand under his arm, smiled, and began leading her around.

Ten minutes later and she was so irritated at not finding the billionaires that Kagome managed to completely ignore the new death glares she was receiving.

"Your friends surely are good at disappearing," her escort noted drily. Perhaps he was picking up on her mood.

"Unfortunately, yes," Kagome replied through her teeth. She could feel a headache coming on and her feet were killing her. "I apologize on their behalf, sir."

He smiled down at her and she squinted her eyes. Damn, that smile was so bright and so not real that she was being blinded. "There's no need miss. Though I would prefer it if I could gain your name ass an apology." He said it as though it was highly suggestive.

Kagome looked around the room again, trying to see over the heads of the humans around them. "It's Higurashi Kagome – you can call me Kagome."

He hummed. "Japanese origin, isn't it?" She gave him an 'well, duh'-look. "I apologize; your English have no accent at all. Did you grow up here?"

Kagome laughed awkwardly – she wasn't very good with compliments from unknown men. "No, no. I was born and raised in Japan. My father was an American though.

He hummed again and steered her around a high table filled with drinks. He grabbed one filled with ginger ale. Kagome frowned, not really one for drinking much herself – a lightweight is a lightweight. "What's yours? Name, I mean."

At first he didn't seem to hear her, so she opened her mouth to ask again when a loud shriek – which turned into girlish giggling and laughter – sounded from somewhere behind them. Kagome gritted her teeth. She was pretty sure _who_ had caused that sound.

"That damn, flirtatious, playboy, jackass…" Even though she had travelled with InuYasha in the past, Kagome hadn't been able to upgrade her vocabulary of insults. Working with her boss hadn't managed to do a thing to upgrade it either, since he somehow managed to get under her skin and to bot he was slippery like an eel -

"Ah! Kagome, my little minx – I found you!" Tony beamed at her as she turned. He seemed unaffected by her glares, sadly enough. "Let me introduce you. This pretty little redheaded vixen is Stacy-" Stacy smiled brightly and waved at Kagome and her escort, "and this stunning blonde is Amber!" Amber gave Kagome an once-over. Then a triumphed smirk bloomed on her face. Kagome decided she hated the girl, with her pretty green eyes and perfectly cut and straight blonde hair.

Tony didn't seem to notice the hostile looks his personal assistant were gaining from one of his flirts. He smiled just as brilliantly as he gave Kagome an appreciative look. "This, my dears, are my amazingly beautiful, intelligent and _marvelous_ personal assistant, Kagome."

Kagome glowered at him. But decided to forgive him. A little. And not because of his compliments.

"Pleasure," she said smoothly, smiling coolly at the now frowning blonde. Her smile turned a few degrees warmer as she turned her smile to the redhead.

"Ah- Tony." Her escort said, sounding mildly amused. He looked down at Kagome and blinked. "Miss Higurashi, you could but have said _who_ it were you were looking for – just look for the biggest crowd I would say."

Kagome smiled at her escort. "Speaking from experience?"

"Oh, yes," he smiled, a cute dimple appearing at the right corner of his mouth. He winked impishly to her and her smile grew just a little larger.

Tony huffed and stepped forward, leaving both of his dates behind; Stacy with a quizzical expression while amber looked downright murderous. "Bruce Wayne," Tony said in way of greeting. Kagome noted he didn't offer his hand. "Out to conquer my employee?"

Two pair of blue eyes widened at the statement. But only one of them narrowed dangerously.

"Tony Stark!" Kagome boomed as dark red spots began to bloom on her cheeks as her anger grew. "How dare you!"

He shrugged at her, eyes not leaving the now named man. "What? Just stating the truth. If anyone is more of a womanizer than I am, it's this fella." The billionaire got a completive look. "Or maybe I _am_ the big bad wolf in that department." He looked at Kagome and leered, seemingly unaffected by the dark look she shot him. "So _maybe_ it's _me_ you ought to look out for, pretty one."

Kagome wasn't affected. "Mr Stark. Bruce Wayne is an important business partner to our company – how dare you say something like that?" She shot an apologetic look to her escort, now named Bruce. "I apologize it took so long for me to recognize you, Mr. Way-"

"Please," Bruce interrupted her and, to everyone's surprise – except Tony, who frowned – he took her hand, still in the crook of his arm. "Call me Bruce." He proceeded with a gentle kiss to the back of her hand.

Had Kagome not been living door-to-door with Tony Stark, the famous playboy billionaire, and had she not been "courted" by Kouga in the far past, she would probably have blushed at the intimate gesture. As it now was, she merely blinked and gave a sweet smile.

"Bruce, then. Still, I want to apologize."

"Then how about dinner. Tomorrow night, eight o'clock?" Bruce tucked her hand under his arm again.

She smiled, hugging his arm lightly. "That would be _perfect_, Bruce." Kagome turned to Tony then, whose eyes seemed to have disappeared under his heavy frown. "I will see you later, Mr. Stark, since I can see that you're… busy."

Bruce nodded to Tony and led Kagome away through the crowd, leaving a certain Mr. Stark with crossed arms and a distinctive pout, while Amber where trying to tug him in the other direction. Stacy was nowhere to be seen.

When they had rounded a corner Bruce asked her, "How did I perform?"

Kagome smiled mischievously. "_Perfect._"

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**It's been **_ages, _I know. I've just graduated from... what's it called in English... high school? Well, I'm nineteen this year at least and yay - time to write the very appropriate "unemployed" in my profile.

Very well, this chapter, or short story if you will, popped up. I've always wanted Bruce Wayne and Tony Stark to really meet - two genuises, playboys, milionaires, super heroes etcetera etcetera. Sadly enough I didn't really know _how_ my Batman is. Yes, _mine_, for all fanfictionettes and fanfiction-hombres have their very own idea of how to portray a character.

Aaaaand I'm rambling. Sorry, middle of the night over here and I'm watching the first season of Pretty Little Liars on DVD. And reading. Writing. Playing some Fallout. And rambling again.

Please review for more rambling! Or to make me stop rambling, whichever comes first!


	5. Part 2 - Your Wish Is My Command Or not

**Standard Disclaimer: Neither InuYasha characters or Iron Man characters are mine. Batman characters ALSO do NOT belong to me.**

* * *

She had actually gone out with Bruce Wayne the next night, much to her boss's, Tony Starks, chagrin. He had wailed and pouted, froze her out and badmouthed Bruce – but she hadn't listened. In the end she had left. Kagome was sure that if she had looked back she would have seen her boss's face pressed up against one of the mansion's glasswindows.

Bruce had picked her up in a black limousine and before long they had stopped before an exclusive restaurant. She had dropped her chin and sputtered protests; "It's too expensive!" and "I'm not properly dressed for this", but Bruce wouldn't listen to that ear.

"You are very beautiful," he had said with a twinkle in his eye. "Every woman will be jealous of your beauty, and every male will be envious of me who's in the beauty's company."

Kagome had blushed, but ceased her protests.

The food was great, if sparse considering the amount of money they – Bruce – had been charged. The wine though was even better, and she emptied glass after glass as she became tipsier and tipsier. The best of the evening though had been Bruce's charming company.

She hadn't laughed that much in a long time.

Just after twelve at night Bruce dropped her off outside Tony's mansion. He had expressed his concern and offered to walk her to the door, but she had waved him off. "If Tony notice, he will send his robotdogs. He can become a little jealous when I'm not there to change his diapers," she had muttered with a pout before giggling at the image of a giant baby Stark.

Bruce had laughed as well, before bidding her goodnight with a kiss on her cheek.

So now Kagome stood in front of her and her boss's mansion – weird to think of it as _theirs_, as though they were _married_ or something – with her shoes kicked off and keys jangling between her fumbling fingers as she attempted to remember how the damn key to the door looked like.

"Not that one, not that… _definitely_ not that," she mumbled to herself, discarding one key after another. Why did her keychain have so many _keys_ for?

Suddenly the outdoor lights blared on, momentarily blinding her, and the door was wrenched open. There stood her boss, Tony Stark, in his whole not-wearing-a-bathrobe glory. Nope. He stood there, arms crossed and glaring while being Stark naked. That's right – he had never liked being constricted by clothes when at home. How could she forget?

She giggled. "Hello." Should she comment his state of dress – or undress? Nah – she kinda liked the muscles on his bare chest. One wouldn't think it when he was dressed and at work, but he had – despite being a little short – a nice body; not too much muscle, but not much fat to talk about either.

"Do you know what time it is?" he asked, eyes unblinking and glaring. Kagome blinked and tipped her head to the side. Tony glared harder. "Are you drunk?"

She giggled. "Just a tiny-_weeny_ little bit." Kagome measured up the appropriate amount of alcohol she had consumed that night between her forefinger and thumb.

Tony wasn't very convinced. "You are _very _drunk," he concluded as he grabbed her arm and dragged her inside.

"Hey, mister! I can walk _perfectly _by myself!" Kagome shrieked and yanked her arm out of his grasp. The motion made her stumble however and she staggered on her tiptoes before gravity grabbed her. Kagome yelped as she fell on her side.

"Ow," she hissed. "Who put the floor there?"

Tony sighed irritably and bent down, giving her a nice view of his package. She giggled again. "I did. Now, up you go." He placed his hands under her armpits and lifted her as if she were a child.

"I can wal-"

"Yes, yes, when you are not a walking and talking bottle of tequila." He proceeded to carry her bridal style. "J.A.R.V.I.S – prepare a big – and I repeat BIG – glass of water for miss Higurashi."

"Very well sir," the robotic voice answered from somewhere. "Shall I prepare some aspirins as well?"

Tony looked down at Kagome, who had begun singing softly to herself while giggling. "Please do. I imagine she will feel like a cracked egg in the morning. Ah, and open her door for me please."

"Did you just call me an egg?" she asked and blinked up at him, blue eyes huge and slightly rimmed with red.

He smirked down at her as the door to her room silently creaked open. "Well… you are a chick after all." Inside the room and laying her down on her bed where she curled up like a little pup. "Now, go to sleep, little chick."

Kagome looked at him, slightly sobered up. Why was he so gentle with her? He had looked so _mad_ earlier that evening – why was he so… nice to her now?

InuYasha never really was this kind to her, she remembered. As Tony smiled down at her, tucked the covers over her body and stroked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, she began to cry. Not the beautiful actress-crying, where you could see gentle droplets – two, one on each cheek – roll down her cheeks. Kagome cried an ocean, completed with wailing, snot and puffy red eyes that stung.

As the male-species are known to do, Tony panicked. "I'm sorry! Did I hurt you? Are you hurt anywhere?... Did _Bruce_ do anything to you, because I swear to God-" He flailed with his hands, trying to both comfort her and evade the mingled tears and snot from connecting with his person.

Kagome shook her head, great sobs wracking her drunken frame. "Just – hold me?" She held out her arms, clearly expecting him to hug her. When he froze and stared at her, she sobbed again and uttered a broken, "Please."

He resigned.

-ooo-

Who turned up the sun?

Kagome groaned and buried her head into her pillow. Then she groaned again as the motion made her brain dance a tango of its own, thus making her notice her volcano-headache.

She could remember drinking and laughing. With a man, the night before. That's right, Bruce had taken her out on their "prank-date" to irritate Tony. It had turned into a real date, she remembered with a small smile. He had been so _nice_ and the ever charmer.

She frowned. How did she come home?

She paled suddenly and stiffened. Why did she feel a leg – a very _naked_, as in not _clothed_ – leg over her ankles? _'Don't tell me I took him home.'_

No she didn't. She relaxed somewhat as she remembered him laughing, giving her a kiss on the cheek and then driving off. And she remembered Tony when he opened the d-

He had been naked.

He had been _naked_.

Kagome threw the covers off, leapt out of bed and covered by the drawer. "What are you doing in my _bed_, Mr. Stark?!"

"Sleeping," came a lazy mumble. Laying on top of the covers hiss ass had been laying bare to all to look at, but after her not-so-graceful-leap-out-of-bed-move the covers _just_ managed to do what they were meant to do; cover.

Heart thudding and blood rushing to her cheeks she stood up, hands balled and quaking slightly. "Why are you _sleeping_ in _my_ bed?" Good. Her voice wasn't shaking this time.

He groaned and began moving. She shrieked and covered her eyes, "Kami, _don't move_!" Kagome may be used to men's flirting by now, but she _certainly_ wasn't quite ready to go to the _next _level.

And seeing her boss naked was _way _higher than she really wanted to go. Really.

Tony rolled over and sat up in bed, not in the least embarrassed by his state of undress. "Didn't bother you last night," he yawned and scratched the back of his neck as he stretched. After taking a look at her, still covering and blushing like mad, he sobered up somewhat. Well, in a Tony-kind of way. "Actually," he purred, "it was _you_ who coaxed me into bed. _Your _bed."

That did the trick. She looked up, anger and blush blazing. "I did _not_!"

Tony shook his finger at her. "Ah, but you did, little butterfly. I remember it quite well; you falling, me carrying you like a bride and me holding you. Seems close enough to a happy ever after, doesn't it?"

She groaned and hid her face in her hands as she crouched on the ground. Kagome began muttering curses and indignations about perverts and the lack of privacy, but what Tony couldn't see was the grateful smile that slowly spread across her face. Somehow, this morning made yesterday seem gloomy.

"Sooo, does that mean I don't get a good morning kiss?"

"Shut up!"

* * *

**God. This** became done _way_ faster than I imagined. I had actually planned another chapter which I think will be called 'Counting Secrets', but I saw that 'Hey - maybe I'm leaving things hanging here a little.' So yes - I sketched this up about... well, last night. And it went well! I had a great start with it and everything, and I went to sleep - at 2 in the morning - feeling quite pleased with myself.

Then I began writing some more today. And so my computer decided it was a good time to update.

Needless to say, all my previous work, all of it, was gone. Except the previous chapters and 'Counting Secrets'. Only this one was gone.

I'm not all that pleased with this one, so if anyone have any suggestions how I can, as we say in Sweden, "piffa upp det" - furbish up? spruce up? Heck, I don't know - I would be really happy.

Please, do **review**!


	6. Pain part 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own InuYasha or Iron Man characters. The Hulk isn't one of mine either.**

* * *

She knew she was screwed the moment she rushed to her boss's aid. When she saw him falling, due to one of the Hulk's outburst of anger – with his armor on, thank Kami, but with the Hulk still punching his falling form – she had released whatever she had had in her hands and had just run. Straight as one of her arrows would have been.

Kagome knew it was bad – heck, all around could see it was bad, with the loud bang as the fighters hit ground, the cloud filled with asphalt, chewing gum and particles of dust, and that no one came out of said cloud. And it took at least five minutes for the cloud to settle. Which meant both the Hulk and Tony Stark were still in there.

So Kagome ran, already drawing her miko-powers to her hands for the healing spell she knew was needed. She dived into the crater, heedless of the concerned shouts and frantic yells from bystanders.

She coughed and felt her eyes tear up as she breathed in the dust not yet settled inside the giant hole. But she had to see him, had to see where her boss were. And where the Hulk was – Kami knew she didn't need a green monster flinging her across the road and into the café she had been sitting in.

She also needed to see where she put her feet, since the fall had created a minor crater.

A cough and a groan. She went down faster.

A faint blue light were shining through the now rapidly settling cloud and she increased her pace further. But then she stopped and lifted a hand to her face to keep her lips from trembling.

Tony Stark, Iron Man – her boss – were indeed in a critical state; lying at the bottom of the crate with his legs bent in unnatural angles and his helmet nowhere to be seen. Blood was matted in his dark curls – dust were sticking to it and making his hair turn a ghastly grey. The armor covering his front was broken into pieces and most of it was gone. She could see the triangular sphere imbedded in his chest flickering weakly.

Kagome cast a fleeting glance at the other shape bent over her fallen boss; another male, human by the looks of it, but she could feel the bestial anger that simmered inside of him, like a skin under his skin. Brown hair that was disheveled and flecked with debris and his clothes laid about him in tatters and rags.

"I didn't mean to, no, no, no, please, oh God," Kagome could hear the male whimper as he checked Tony's pulse, his eye's movements and the bad wound upon his head. He looked up when he heard her come crashing down the crater. His brown eyes were looking right through her – his terror and helplessness were like a curtain before his eyes.

"Help him!" he whimpered hoarsely. It sounded as though his throat was thick with tears.

Kagome ran the last few meters and dropped down on her knees. "I will," she said as she hurriedly looked over his body with eyes, hands and miko ki for any wounds. She winced and bit her lip from whimpering herself; while his outer body looked like it had been through a beating, his inner felt like it had been through hell and back. Internal bleeding, which she felt with both her miko ki and could see due to the bad bruising on his stomach, punctured lung, broken ribs and ankle, as well as a broken vertebra. If she didn't do anything soon—

'_I _can't_ think like that.'_ She shook her head and got to work. "Take this," Kagome commanded the shellchocked man as she grabbed a discarded rag – dirty, but sufficient, "and press it hard to the wound on his head." When he made no move to take it, she threw it in his face. "Do it _now_, or he may die!"

He wouldn't, if she had any say in this, but the man didn't need to know that.

Satisfied when he moved to Tony's head she focused on the broken ribs. Setting them straight, with some of her ki, before working on the lung that had punctured; if she started on the lung she would heal it alright, but the broken ribs would still punctuate it and she would waste energy.

Kagome could hear the male draw ragged breaths, as though calming himself. Good. No one would benefit if he freaked out right now.

Doing the minor injuries – which terrified her, since the injuries were anything but minor – she moved to his abdomen. The bruising was bad, close to being black in the middle before it flowered out to purple. It would take a significant amount of her energy to heal it beyond life threatening – and to do that she had to make her powers visible.

Kagome had come to America to start over, to leave the past where it should be – in the past. She had managed, day by day, to recover from the loss of her friends and from the ultimate heartbreak with InuYasha. Was she prepared to relive all that pain again by showing who she was?

One look at Tony's sweating and shuddering face was all she needed. She didn't need a better reason.

Gently placing her hands on the darkest bruise on his abdomen Kagome took a deep breath and released her ki. It poured through her, gently at first like the first drops of rain, but soon it forced its way out through her hands, her fingers, with the power and force behind a waterfall. Her hands began to glow steadily more pink and she was amazed by it, the gentle yet strong potency that left her and flowed into Tony's body. She hadn't thought she would miss how her power felt like when released.

Kagome thought she could hear a sharp intake of breath, but whether it came from Bruce, Tony or herself she didn't know. She kept her hands gently but firmly pressed to Tony's abdomen and stared at it to watch the bruises fade.

After what felt like an eternity, but couldn't have been more than a few minutes, she closed the seal on her power and faltered a little. Feeling dizzy and seeing black spots before her eyes, Kagome wiped a sweaty bang away from her face and released a heavy sigh. Hopefully, that would be enough. At least his innards weren't messed up anymore, and the bruising wasn't more than a faint pink on his stomach.

Releasing another gulp of breath, she glanced at Tony's face. And froze.

Dark chocolate eyes, filled with wonder and some pain, looked back at her. Though his cheeks and lips were still white with a mix of pain and blood loss, he managed to look alert.

"What _are _you?" he whispered through chapped lips as his eyes scanned over every part of her.

She managed a weak smile as she reached out, smoothing out the blood-covered bangs on his forehead. "Did you get a concussion? I'm your personal assistant, Kagome Higurashi."

The dark spots grew before her eyes and before she knew it everything went dark.

* * *

**Yay, an update. This is the first part of several more - it got longer than expected ._.  
Hopefully it will be somewhat fun to read!**

**Next part: Tony's point of view!**


	7. Pain part 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own InuYasha or Iron Man characters. The Hulk isn't one of mine either.**

* * *

Tony couldn't move.

He couldn't freaking _move_.

'_Well, not such a wonder,'_ he reasoned with himself. _'You've just received a beating from a very angry and very green Bruce Banner aka Science Bro.'_

Why had he received the beating? Tony couldn't remember. One moment they were talking like the bros they were, and the next he was flying out through the window. And now, the _third_ moment, he was lying inside a crater made of asphalt, with shaking hands at his head, and a wonderfully cool feeling spreading all over his stomach.

A finger twitched. Eureka!

He tried closing his whole hand, and slowly – _pain!_ – he managed to close it into a loose fist. Loose, but a fist.

The hands on his head shook and he heard a sharp intake of breath. He opened his eyes, closed them and opened them again. Damn, who thought dust could be so _bright_? When his eyes managed to adjust somewhat to the bright afternoon light glaring down at him from above, he noticed his bro, Bruce Banner, staring beyond him.

Hey, _he_ was the one who was injured; a little love, perhaps?

Nonetheless, he wouldn't complain. Bruce was probably completely horrified because he had lost control over the Other Guy. So Tony clenched his teeth and managed to raise his head.

Now, maybe he had damaged his head somewhat – he was pretty sure, based on the steady throbbing he could feel through his scalp, that he had an ugly gash somewhere beyond his forehead – but he was sure his personal assistant, his butterfly, couldn't quite shine like that.

Maybe he had died, and she was the last thing he would see. Tony didn't complain, though he would have preferred something less skin-hiding and the dirt covering Kagome's cheeks. He wasn't religious, but he was sure that an angel would look like that. Though he hadn't expected an angel to have a pink sheen highlighting her face.

Tony blinked, sight clearing more as he did. Her dark tresses had come undone from her normally neat bun and she had a focused scowl etched onto the valley between her eyebrows. Tony followed her gaze to see her hands pressing lightly to his abdomen. That caused some frolicking fantasies to invade his mind, but he shooed them away. Not the time, nor the place. He liked Bruce, but he wasn't interested in acting out his fantasies in front of him. And he didn't think his body could muster up the strength to go through with said fantasies.

His sight – and brilliant mind, if he said so himself – had cleared enough to realize a number of things:

Kagome wasn't a figment of his imagination due to his death, but she was very real.

Her hands were pressed to his bare – bare as in not clothed – abdomen, which felt oh so good.

Her hands were also glowing pink, which was humanly impossible, unless it was some kind of flashlight.

Due to her hands glowing pink, which as recently stated was impossible for a human unless a flashlight of some sort was involved and since he couldn't think of a reason for her to hold a lamp over his stomach, the conclusion was that she couldn't be human.

But that couldn't be. She had been with him for all of four months by now and she had shown no sign of being of an alien species. Was it radiation or a mutation since birth? _Was_ she an alien, or a God like Thor? The possibilities were infinite and he couldn't even begin to contemplate them as the pink light died down and there simply was his Kagome sitting by his side, chest heaving and eyes fluttering shut once.

Then her blue eyes met his.

Staring at her face, searching for some sort of alien heritage and finding nothing, Tony asked, "What _are_ you?" No enlarged pupils, no strange light shining out of them and no extra eye he had been unaware of earlier. She was simply Kagome.

Kagome smiled; tired and relieved. "Did you get a concussion?" she asked. His mouth went dry as he felt her fingers brush over his forehead, and not all of it was caused by caution. "I'm your personal assistant, Kagome Higurashi."

And so she passed out. Tony would have caught her like the true gentleman he really is, but due to his aching bones and discomforting discovery he found himself frozen where he was; mostly because his back hurt like the Hulk had waltzed all over it.

Which he probably had, now that he thought about it.

Bruce was the one doing the catching instead; reaching out and catching _his_ assistant before she fell all over him. Tony wouldn't have complained _that_ much about the extra weight.

"Okay," Bruce said shakily as he gently turned the unconscious woman until she rested comfortably in the crook of his arm. Something inside Tony stirred with a growl at the sight. "What just happened?"

Tony let out a sigh. "That, my friend," he said as he slowly and painfully tested his shoulders, "was a woman fainting with an air of mystery."

* * *

**Goodness, I love writing from the Stark's point of view.**

**Next, and last, part: Confused Kagome wakes up.**


	8. Pain part 3

**Disclaimer: I, sadly, own nothing**

* * *

That was her roof. She was sure of it, though she couldn't remember falling to sleep.

Or maybe that was just it; she had fainted due to another session of demon hunting and had thus misused her miko ki. Oh, InuYasha would be so _pissed_ at h-

Kagome blinked and the ceiling swam into better proportions as she began to leave her sleepy mind. How could she forget? The well was closed and sealed, the past where it belonged; in the past. She hadn't seen InuYasha or any of the other's for years – why would she think she had just been with them?

Kagome sat up slowly, nursing her head as the first stabs of pain began to assault her poor head. With the pain, pictures of previous events flashed through her mind; the battle, the farewell and the well. The following depression, Sesshomaru and the job offer, the trip to America. Tony Stark.

"That's right!" Kagome exclaimed out loud. Pain flashed before her eyes and she doubled over. Did she make it? Was Tony all right? She couldn't remember.

"_Good evening, miss Higurashi."_ Even though she had lived in the building for months, that robotic voice always scared the crap out of her. _"How has your sleep been?"_

"Good, I guess." She rubbed her neck. "Wait, _evening_? Have I been unconscious for half a day?"

J.A.R.V.I.S made some noise somewhere. _"No. You have been asleep for close to twenty eight hours."_

Hadn't she already been in bed, she would have fallen over. "Twenty eight _hours_?!"

"_Shall I inform Mr. Stark about your awakening?"_

She groaned and put her hands to her face, sighing heavily. "No. Just... where is he?" A headache was coming on, gently throbbing behind her eyelids.

"_Ground floor, at the bar with mister Bruce Banner, miss Higurashi." _

"Great." Whenever Tony felt like he was out of control or simply had to think about something really hard, he either went down to his lab to invent stuff or he simply took a bottle of strong liquor to gobble down in some corner. After the breakup with Pepper he had been drinking nonstop for four days before Kagome promptly kicked his ass.

Not surprisingly, she felt more than a headache growing hearing that, not only was he drinking, but he had dragged Bruce into it as well.

Tumbling out of bed and throwing on some clothes – wondering bitterly who, or what, had undressed her – she hurried downstairs. Already she could hear glasses clinking together as though in toast. Sometimes there was thumps as said glasses were slammed down.

Rounding into the parlor she glared at the two men's backs. Judging by Tony's slurring demeanor and Bruce's more rigid one, she assumed that both of them was intoxicated.

"I just... it was so _beautiful_," Tony sighed into his glass before throwing his head back, downing the liquor in one gulp. "So _bright_ and _warm_. How can it be so _warm_, it's ridicu-colu-. It's silly!"

Definitely drunk out of his mind. Her headache was blooming as her anger grew.

Bruce on the other hand was clutching his drink as though he would fall into an abyss if he let go. "I don't _know_, Tony." Judging by his resigned tone Tony had pestered him about that jumble of words for quite some time now.

Biting her lip and counting quietly to ten – then twenty – to keep from shouting, she said. "Mr. Stark. Mr. Banner."

Bruce reacted accordingly, whipping around on his chair so fast he nearly fell over. Tony turned around sluggishly, leaning awkwardly on the bar and smiling drunkenly at her.

"Kitten! You're up and about!"

She eyed his bottle pointedly as her glare intensified. Had he not been drunk, maybe he would have caught on about her temper.

"Oh, this little beastly thing has kept me company as you've had your beauty sleep," Tony slurred, gesturing to both the bottle of whiskey and to Bruce. Kagome said nothing. "I _know_, I know, it ain't very gentlemanly not to offer the first sip to the lady, but you couldn't very well drink, could you?"

He was _definitely _too drunk.

The headache which had been a soft background noise in her mind bloomed some more, becoming a roar. To hell with it.

"That's it!" She stomped her foot and pointed with a trembling finger at Tony, who seemed mildly surprised at her outburst. "I didn't kick your ass, throw out all the alcohol _and_ give each and every liquor store in America a warning about selling anything of drinkable sort to you last time, just for you to be your own _stupid self_ and do it all over again!"

Tony said nothing at her tirade, simply tilted his head so it was resting on Bruce's shoulder. Bruce however looked spooked. She briefly thought about apologizing to him, but shook it off as she saw the glass in the doctor's hand.

"And you-" finger swiftly pointed at Bruce, who jumped in shock, "should definitely _not_ be drinking, and no matter what _that idiot _says you know better!" Breathing out through her nostrils she counted once more to ten with her eyes closed.

_'Calm, I'm calm. No one can pester me, no one can rile me, calm, so calm.' _She almost convinced herself as well.

"I wonder where it came from..." Tony mumbled right in front of her, and she opened her eyes to see Tony standing no more than three inches from her face, scrutinizing every inch of her. "I don't think it's any part between toes or neck, but it could very well be the head, arms or hands." Saying that he grabbed her right hand, spread her fingers that had been curled into fists and began drawing lines in her open palm, as though he could read her future. Kagome squirmed, finding it ticklish "It came from here, but there should be nothing in hands that can fuse or produce that sort of energy of force. Perhaps they are simply the jumper cables, but the real power comes from something else..."

Kagome felt confused, as she always did when Tony went into "science-mode". "What are you talking about?"

He looked up and suddenly they were face to face, he looking down into her eyes with a surprisingly sober and serious expression, her up with a strange blend of confusion/fear/anger. She didn't dare breathe as he slowly blinked and moved his eyes lower.

"You look _really _cute when you've got marks from you pillow on your face," he said suddenly, grinning happily and breaking the strange mood Kagome didn't want to name. A vein made itself known as it throbbed at her left temple.

Bruce cleared his throat before Kagome could properly pommel the drunkard. "I'm really sorry about his behavior Miss Kagome, but are _you_ all right?"

"Oh, I'm fine," she answered on impulse, nearly forgetting her anger, "I'm used to it."

Bruce glanced at Tony, who was too busy sporting a silly grin at Kagome. He was up to something, Bruce was sure. "'Used to'? Passing out?"

She blinked and thought about how to word her answer. "Well... yeah, I guess." Knowing how weird that sounded, she elaborated. "I had a... weak immune system in between middle and high school so I was sick a lot."

Tony frowned. Bruce noticed. Kagome did as well. "What?"

Tony's lower lip jutted out, he leaned closer and his eyes narrowed. In response she leaned back, curling her lip in disgust as his whiskey-infested breath fanned out over her face. He looked her up and down, a thoughtful expression on his face that Kagome couldn't quite understand. Was he..?

"I'm tired, Kagome," he sighed suddenly. His feet decided then that they were tired of standing and tipped him over. She had a brief moment to react before she had Tony Stark, Iron Man – her boss – leaning heavily with his face in her bosom.

She froze. Bruce froze. Time and the world seemed to freeze, holding their breath and waiting for what would happen next.

Then Kagome's cheeks, throat and the top of her chest flamed with embarrassment and anger. She wanted nothing more than to push her boss away from her, throw him on his back and kick him right where it would hurt the most. Taking hold under his armpits she would just do that when Tony let out a little whine and tensed under her touch.

"Ah!" Bruce came out of his stupor and hurried forward, gently coaxing Tony off of Kagome. "He's still badly hurt, I'm afraid," he said sadly, guilt making his cheeks rosy.

Oh. She had forgotten about that. She stepped out of the way as Bruce excused himself and began dragging the drunk Tony to said drunk's room. She followed them with her gaze as they went, feeling a tiny bit ashamed of herself. But he had looked so _normal_, acted like he always did – even if it was like a drunk lunatic.

Kagome sighed and held her waist. At least he was mostly healed. She had managed to save him, and he would be fine in-

"_It came from here, but there should be nothing in hands that can fuse or produce that sort of energy or force of light." _

Oh, shit. Her heart began to thump harshly, worsening her head-ache, as she realized something quite crucial. That moment had been one of his more sober ones. One of his scientific ones, to be more precise.

And it was about her powers. He had _seen _her use them – there couldn't be another reason behind his weird act.

"Just breathe. A nice, calming deep breath that erases all the bad stuff and replaces it with the _good _stuff." Mumbling to herself she breathed through her nose, calming her heart and easing the headache somewhat. As she breathed she let her arms swing by her sides, cracked her neck and sighed. She didn't feel better, but she sure felt a little calmer than before.

Kagome frowned. She wasn't sure though why her 'good stuff' would be his boss's words from earlier.

"_You look _really _cute when you've got marks from you pillow on your face."_

She had to sit down for a minute. No, better yet – she had to go hide in her own room for the rest of the night.

It was when she turned a corner and saw the two men – who she thought had disappeared into Tony's room already – that she hid behind the wall. She didn't know why she did it – call it instinct.

"She will figure it out eventually, Tony." She perked her ears as Bruce's gentle murmur wafted in her direction. Were they talking about her? Kagome, curious and a little ashamed of her eavesdropping, peeked around the corner.

Bruce stood in the middle of the hall, back to her, and had his arms crossed. Tony on the other hand was slightly facing her, which worried her for a second. He was leaning against the wall beside his room's door – and had a large grin on his face.

She frowned. Was he hiding something from her? _More_ liquor in his room perhaps, and that was what Bruce meant?

"Yes, yes, I know. A curious thing, that one. But I will be careful, Bruce." He gave the doctor a wink and laughed lightly when Bruce emitted a sigh that could mean anything between "I-know" to "Why-am-I-being-dragged-into-this?". "I just need to perform a few tests, in all secret of course. A few hair-samples, skin tissue. Maybe blood too, if I'm _really_ careful about it. There's at least two different ways how I should go about it," he hummed.

Her heart began thumping again. He was not hiding any alcohol, that was for sure.

Bruce dragged a hand across his face. "Sometimes you go too far, Stark."

"Ah, but bro – all for science and figuring out life's mysteries, no?"

The timid doctor shook his head and turned around, to Kagome's mounting panic. "Do what you want Stark. Just don't drag me into it."

Where should she hide? There was _nothing_ up there where she could! Quickly pulling her head back she looked around in distress. Behind her was the stairs, and in front was the corner she already _was_ hiding behind! And Bruce just kept getting closer – for being such a careful man battling against his nerves, anger and most importantly against the Hulk, he was damned fast.

"I won't. But I know you'll want to know what I find out," Tony sing-sang before a door was opened and closed. But the footsteps kept creeping closer.

Too much time had slipped from her. Kagome froze, stared at the corner as a deer in headlights. She jumped as a sneaker-clad foot appeared, followed by a pair of loose sweatpants before the rest of Bruce Banner followed.

He stopped as he noticed her, his eyes growing larger and his cheeks going slightly paler. Then his mouth opened, but he didn't say anything; just stood there, eyes dark and wide, tousled hair and a gaping mouth. It was enough to bring Kagome out of her frozen state and begin giggling nervously.

"Um, h-hi."

His mouth snapped shut. She wondered whether he had broken some teeth. "How," he looked back the way he had come from, as though checking if Tony was there," how long have you been there?"

Kagome looked down, fiddled with her thumbs. "Long enough?"

She could _hear_ him swallow. "O-oh."

They both went into an awkward silence as they tried to think of something to say. Her mind was whirling from all that had just transpired. She had gooseflesh on her skin and the fine hair at the back of her neck were standing at attention. _'Tissue samples, hair, _blood_!' _She had no doubt in her mind that Tony would somehow manage to get all of those things, and it scared her that he would go to such lengths just to investigate her. _'It's so much easier to just _ask _me,' _Kagome thought and let out a small sigh.

Bruce opened his mouth again, closed it and sighed, bringing her out of her jumbled mess of mental activity.

"I... um..."

He didn't seem to know how to handle this situation either it seemed. Biting her lip she weighed pros and cons in her mind about what to say, before she took pity on him.

"You saw what I did, right? My healing of Tony?" There, she said it.

Bruce looked startled that she admitted it so openly. For a minute he impersonated a guppy as he opened and closed her mouth. "Y-yes? What was that?"

"Holy energy." Kagome said bluntly, ignoring his raised eyebrow as she went on. "It can be used against impurity such as feelings in beings; jealousy, anger, hate. It can also heal that which is hurt or wrong. Not all of it though."

His eyes widened suddenly and he took a step back. She cast a questioning glance at him. "Those times, at Stark Tower. When we shook hands and-"

"Oh!" Kagome caught onto what he was saying and blushed furiously. "That- I know from Tony that it's your strong feelings, and then primarily anger, that sets you-know-who off within you. So I... calmed him, a little." She looked up then down quickly. "Sorry."

He dragged a hand through his hair. "No... it's just... why did I turn into the Other Guy if you _erased_ my anger, if that's even possible?" The word sounded as a question in itself, proving that he didn't quite believe what she'd told him.

Kagome shrugged her shoulders. "It isn't possible to _erase _them, just calm them for a little while. Like with everything that's life, nothing can be truly gone forever."

_'Hopefully, some things will.'_ The Shikon no Tama came to mind.

"I see." Bruce sighed heavily, shoulders sagging. "Then perhaps there ain't any cure for me."

"Don't think like that, Bruce." Kagome patted his shoulder awkwardly, smiling a little as he looked up. "Have you ever tried figuring out how to fuel your anger into something else? Like, when you prepare to take a jump, you slightly bend your knees before pushing away with all your power."

"I don't think-"

He froze then as her hand clamped over his mouth, effectively shutting him up. Kagome narrowed her eyes. "Don't discard an opportunity – figure it out and _use_ it." Her eyes widened suddenly and she promptly face-palmed herself, causing Bruce to jump. She mumbled incoherently to herself.

"Kago-"

"You know what?" She whirled around and nearly poked his eye out as she pointed at him. "I help you keep _him_ calm and with a way for you to use your anger instead of being used by it. In return..." She broke off, thinking. "In return, you can keep Tony from turning me into a test-subject. Deal?"

-ooo-

He didn't know what to make of her. Bruce stared at the raven haired girl – woman – that held her hand out for him to shake. She had just heard Tony jabbering about how he would figure her out, meaning he would steal different parts from her person to investigate in his lab. Anyone should have been scared off, or at most angry about it.

She had been scared. And some parts angry as well. But just as quickly she had turned playful, almost excited as she looked at him now. She was as fickle as the wind.

"Well?" Kagome drew the word out. Her blue eyes were sparkling with excitement.

He sighed. He had already tried everything there was – yoga, meditation, long talks with the others from the Avengers. It couldn't hurt.

So he extended her hand and shook it, a small smile appearing as she let out a giggle.

He didn't want to spoil her happy mood with telling her that everything Tony had done earlier had been for his own, sober, amusement.

* * *

**Aaah, **Tony.

Sorry about the wait, but I got a new laptop, went to an anime Convention, got home dead tired and then I've mostly lived at night. Maybe I should focus more on Bruce Wayne then, since I've got the atmosphere for it. My room is pretty much a batcave by now...

Getting off track... new laptop and without an USB which means I couldn't move my fanfictions on the OTHER laptop onto the new one, so I figured I could send them from one of my mails to my other, more used, one. That way I could get them without said USB. I live for the unnecessary stuff. However, my Internet is flatout crap so it wasn't until some Days ago that I managed to send at least 10 different fanfiction, poems and stories (yay!) to my new laptop and SUCCESSFULLY download them (double-yay!).

SO! This chapter... I don't know. I had written the first six or seven sentences on the other laptop already and felt pretty pleased with it. Then I wasn't sure how I wanted it to work out so I left it alone. Now, if it was two days ago or just yesterday, I had an idea and began writing. It's just that, it didn't turn out like I thought it would. Goddammit, but I Think that Kagome, Bruce and Tony are controlling me, not the other way around. They just leapt out of my hands, literally.

And to answer a Review I got: No. This is not the last you'll see in this drabble-fiction, but it may or may not be very shifting when I will get the thumb out and actually upload. I blame internet.

Constructive critic is always welcome!


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